February 13, 2005

I hope that you have already noticed the change in the colors in the church from green to purple. Why do we use the color purple? The first reason is because we, the Church, have entered a new time in the church year, the season of Lent, which is the forty day period that started on Ash Wednesday last week and ends on the day before Easter. The season of Lent means different things to different people. Some of us understand Lent in its traditional way as the time when we fast or give up something. Others understand Lent from a more contemporary point of view as a time to take on something that is self-giving and self-sacrificing.

Certainly, these different understandings and ways to observe Lent are faithful, but neither fully grasps the depth of what this season of Lent is all about. This is why we use the color purple, because the color purple symbolizes the pain and suffering leading up to the crucifixion of Jesus as well as the suffering of humanity and the world under sin. But, it also symbolizes the anticipation through the suffering and death of Jesus the coming resurrection and hope of newness that will be celebrated on Easter Sunday. Therefore, purple serves as both a reminder and a hope; as a reminder of the sin that plaques humanity and all of creation and the hope we have in the saving and reconciling acts of God in Jesus Christ for the world.

Not every protestant church observes the season of Lent. Maybe they don’t because in many ways the season of Lent is not an easy season to be in. Lent forces us to confront directly and honestly our sin. Not just the sins of what we do or don’t do, say or don’t say that are against God’s will and commandments, but the very condition that stains and taints our humanness, the very condition that disrupts and breaks down our relationship with God and with others. It’s easy for us to talk about sins because we all know that we fail to follow God’s will completely in our everyday lives. But it is much harder for us to talk about our sin as a condition of ourselves, because we don’t like to hear that we are sinful. It’s like fingernails on a chalkboard, because talking about sin is so darn personal, because it means talking about ourselves.

Talking about sin means that what is wrong has to do with me, that the problem is not out there, but in here, within me, the problem that affects how I live, how I act, and who I am. Talking about sin forces us to get off our self-constructed pedestals and reminds us that we are not as perfect as we like to think we are. Talking about sin exposes us and confronts us with the reality that before God we stand naked and without excuse.

Lent is a spiritual journey, but it’s not an easy journey. It requires an honest reflection and self-examination of our life of discipleship. Being able to stand and look in the mirror at ourselves is not easy, but it is the mark of true devotion and faithfulness. It means that we are willing to be truthful about ourselves, and therefore truthful about our complete and utter dependence upon God’s grace for our very lives. This is a spiritual journey we all must take, for it is the journey of a people on the way, on the way from the garden to Golgotha, from human rebellion to divine redemption, from sin to grace.

Our first step on this spiritual journey takes us back to the beginning to a familiar story of the first two people created to be in relationship with God. There in the garden life with God was how it was supposed to be. Adam and Eve had all that they needed. They were dependent upon God for everything. God was the center of their lives, and their relationship with God was good and right. But something happened that changed all of that. They exchanged the truth from God for a lie. They shoved God out of the center of their lives, and became first class rationalizers questioning what God really meant, wondering if there was a gray area in which they could live. They no longer needed God as the foundation of what it meant to be human, of what it meant to be them, of what it meant to be in a faithful, obedient relationship. God was no longer a factor in their debate. God was no longer a factor at all. It was all about them.

But then they get busted, and busted bad. Caught red handed with a piece of apple peal stuck in their teeth as they tried to cover themselves, of course it is hard to cover yourself when you are trying to hide an apple behind your back. It’s really hard not to laugh at how Adam and Eve acted and what they said when they got busted. It reminds me of the time when I caught my girls eating Little Debbie zebra cakes downstairs after I have told them not to eat them. I hear the plastic wrapping crinkling and I know what they are doing. I usually yell down to them, “What are you doing?” And what do you think the response is…”Nothing.” Clue number one that they are up to no good. Then I walk down to the basement, and they look at me as if they did nothing. I look around the couch and what do I see, clue number two, wrappers stuffed behind the cushions. So I ask them what they are eating, but I already know, and they start talking about how the other one made her do it, all the time not realizing their teeth are black from the chocolate cake. Adam and Eve were no different. Adam blamed Eve, Eve said the devil made her do it. But they were both equally to blame. They had gone against God’s will, decided for themselves what was right and what was wrong, disobeyed God’s instruction and standards for relationship, and put the blame on some one else, never taking responsibility for their actions.

Are we really any different? Do we not question God’s will and decide for ourselves what is right and what is wrong? Do we not try to justify our own actions and inactions and then blame society, our family, the economy, others, even God for when we get busted? Do we not try to be the master of our own destiny at times, making God important when it suits us the best, when it’s the right time, when we are ready? Do we not think of our lives as our own, as belonging to us, for us to do with it what we will whenever we will it? Of course we do. It would be dishonest and unfaithful to say otherwise. Let’s face it; God is not always the center of our life. God is not always the foundation of our relationship with God and with others, the foundation of what it means to live real human lives for God and for others, the foundation of what it means to be human created in the likeness of God’s very self. In the presence of God, we can’t help but feel completely exposed, for we know that we are sinners through and through. We know that we have not lived up to God’s expectations. We know that we have fallen short of God’s glory and purpose for our lives, and exchanged the truth of God for a lie, for that which in the end is really unrewarding and unfulfilling.

We are not fooling anyone by claiming we do not have sin. Being truthful about our sin means being willing to take responsibility for it, to claim it, confess it, and be convicted by it, not run from it, ignore it, or deny it. Honest confession is good for the soul. Honest confession is the first act of repentance in which we turn ourselves back to God and boldly and humbly claim our complete and utter dependence upon God, willingly relying on the One who is faithful and just to cleanse us and make us whole.

For the next forty days, let’s take off our righteous robes, put ashes on our head, and come before God with a humility that is willing to confess, “Lord, be merciful to me, a sinner.” Let us come before God and strip ourselves bare of all our pretensions of self-centeredness, and empty ourselves of our false pride and rationalizations and come with our hearts and minds open and ready to respond to God’s presence in our lives in a new way. For the next forty days, let us stand in God’s presence with eyes firmly planted on the horizon and the palms of our hands wide open ready to receive the good news of the One who brings reconciliation, forgiveness, and new life, through the cross of Jesus Christ. Amen.